# LinkedIn newsletter cover image: size and a template that lasts

[Canonical HTML page](https://gradiently.design/guide/linkedin-newsletter-cover)

Each edition of a LinkedIn newsletter gets a cover image, and subscribers see it in their feed and their inbox. Make it a series rather than a single picture, and readers start recognising it before they read the name.

## The short version

- LinkedIn recommends a 1920×1080 image, a 16:9 frame, for the cover of an article or newsletter edition.
- The cover can be cropped slightly in feed previews, so keep the title and logo away from the edges.
- A newsletter also has a small square logo that appears beside its name, separate from each edition's cover.
- The strongest newsletter covers use one template for every edition, changing only the headline and edition number.
- A consistent cover lets subscribers recognise a new edition in a busy feed before they read its title.

The **LinkedIn newsletter cover image** is the wide picture at the top of each edition. LinkedIn recommends 1920×1080 pixels, a 16:9 frame, and it can be cropped a little when shared in the feed, so keep the headline and logo in the middle. The best covers are not designed one at a time: they come from a single template, with the same background and type every week and only the headline and edition number changing.

## LinkedIn newsletter and article image sizes

A newsletter on LinkedIn is a series of articles with a subscribe button, so it uses article sizes plus one extra image: the newsletter's own logo. It also helps to know the link image size, because editions get shared as links outside LinkedIn, where [link preview images](https://gradiently.design/guide/link-preview-image) follow their own rules.

| Image | Size | Where it shows |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Edition or article cover | 1920×1080 px, 16:9 | Top of the edition, feed post, subscriber notification |
| Newsletter logo | Square | Beside the newsletter name, small |
| Link image | 1200×627 px | When the edition's link is shared in posts |
| Inline images | Wide, at least the column width | Inside the article body |

Design the cover at 1920×1080, LinkedIn's recommended size; check LinkedIn's help if the upload screen suggests otherwise. The logo is shown very small, so it should be a simple mark, not a miniature cover.

- Edition cover 1920×1080: 1920 × 1080
- Link image 1200×627: 1200 × 627
- Newsletter logo, square: 1200 × 1200

The cover and the link image are close in shape, so a cover with a centred title survives both. The logo is a different job entirely.

## Keeping the title clear of the crop

Feed previews and phones can trim the edges of a 16:9 cover. Treat the outer band of the frame, roughly the outer tenth on each side, as background only. Set the headline in the middle, large enough to read on a phone, where a cover is a few centimetres wide. If it needs more than eight or nine words, it is a subtitle, not a cover line.

A wide LinkedIn newsletter cover reading Why pricing pages fail, with the newsletter name and issue 14 above

Edition 14: newsletter name and issue number small at the top, the week's idea large in the middle.

A matching wide newsletter cover reading The case for fewer features, with issue 15 above

Edition 15 from the same template. Same background, same positions; the series is recognisable at a glance.

## What to put on a newsletter cover

A cover has three jobs: say which newsletter this is, say what this edition is about, and look like the last one. Everything else is optional, and most of it gets in the way. [Newsletter branding](https://gradiently.design/guide/newsletter-branding) covers the name and voice behind the series.

- **The newsletter name**, small and always in the same place. It is the series signature.
- **The edition's idea**, as a short headline rather than the full article title if that title is long.
- **An issue number or date**, which tells regular readers this is new and quietly signals a habit.
- **One background** that belongs to the newsletter. It does more for recognition than any logo.
- Optionally, **your face** as a small circle, if the newsletter is personal and your photo is how people know you.

### Avoid

- A new stock photo for every edition
- The full title squeezed into three lines
- Text running to the edges of the frame
- Different fonts from week to week
- Busy imagery directly behind the headline

### Do

- One background that is the newsletter's own
- A short cover line of up to nine words
- Words kept in the central area
- One heading font, one weight
- A calm area of the background behind the words

## Article headers versus newsletter covers

If you publish standalone articles as well as a newsletter, give them a related but distinct header so readers can tell a standalone piece from an edition. Keep the same family of colours and the same type, and change one thing: a different light, a different colour from your palette, or no issue number. Here is a pair built from one family.

- Newsletter: blue light: `radial-gradient(ellipse at 80% 20%, #38bdf8 0%, #1e3a8a 40%, #0b1226 85%)`
- Articles: violet light: `radial-gradient(ellipse at 20% 80%, #a78bfa 0%, #312e81 40%, #0b1226 85%)`

Same deep navy ground, light from opposite corners in two colours. Related at a glance, but never confused.

The same thinking extends to your profile. Your [LinkedIn banner](https://gradiently.design/guide/linkedin-banner-size) and your [LinkedIn post design](https://gradiently.design/guide/linkedin-post-design) can share this ground, so a reader who clicks from an edition to your profile lands somewhere familiar. [LinkedIn personal branding](https://gradiently.design/guide/linkedin-personal-branding) covers how those pieces fit together.

## How to build a newsletter cover template

1. **Choose the newsletter's background** One background, kept for every edition. Dark grounds make a cover feel considered in a white feed; light grounds feel editorial. Pick one.
2. **Fix the positions** Newsletter name and issue number top left, headline centred, optional detail line below. Write the positions down and never move them.
3. **Set one font in two sizes** A heading font for the cover line, and the same or a quieter font for the name. [Headline fonts](https://gradiently.design/guide/headline-fonts) helps you choose.
4. **Make the logo separately** Take the background and one initial or a short word, set very large, on a square. It must read at a tiny size.
5. **Write the cover line last** After the edition is written, pull its sharpest idea into a short line. The cover line sells the edition; it does not summarise it.
6. **Check it in the feed** Publish, then look at the edition's post on your phone. If the headline is not readable at that size, cut words, not font size.

## Making every edition cover in minutes

Once the template exists, a new cover should take a minute. In Gradiently you can ask the Designer for the week's cover: give it the edition's idea and it writes a short cover line, lays it out in your Mark and brand kit fonts, and makes the 1200×627 link image from the same design. Because a Mark makes room for the words, the headline stays readable on every edition. If you keep your drafts in ChatGPT or Claude, Gradiently works inside those too.

## FAQ

### What size is a LinkedIn newsletter cover image?

Use 1920×1080 pixels, a 16:9 frame, which is LinkedIn's recommended size for article and newsletter covers.

### Is the LinkedIn newsletter logo the same as the cover image?

No. The logo is a small square image shown beside the newsletter name, while each edition has its own wide cover.

### Why is my LinkedIn article cover cropped?

Feed previews and phones can trim the edges of a 16:9 cover. Keep words and logos in the central area and treat the outer band as background.

### Should every newsletter edition have a different cover design?

Use one template and change only the headline and issue number. A consistent cover helps subscribers recognise each new edition.

### Can I use the same cover for LinkedIn and Substack?

Not as the same file. A LinkedIn cover is 1920×1080 and a Substack header 1456×816; both are close to 16:9, so a centred design adapts well, but resize it rather than stretching one into the other.